


Teach Me How to Play?

by Persiflage



Series: A Single Line of Dialogue Prompts [5]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: 3:03 A Wanted Inhuman, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Disabled Character, Daisy Is The Only Marvel Superhero, Daisy Teaching Phil to Play Video Games, Episode Tag, F/M, Forehead Kisses, Forgiveness, Holding Hands, Not Rosalind Price friendly, Older Man/Younger Woman, POV Phil Coulson, Phil Coulson's Massive Crush on Daisy, Phil Coulson's Prosthetic Hand, Video & Computer Games
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-17
Updated: 2016-08-17
Packaged: 2018-08-09 08:01:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7793713
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Persiflage/pseuds/Persiflage
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Phil can't leave things where they were with Daisy following their disagreement about Rosalind Price and the ATCU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Teach Me How to Play?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Pippypaleopath](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pippypaleopath/gifts).



> The fifth of my Single Line of Dialogue prompt fics. Sadly gen af because it follows straight on from the episode and the babes weren't very romantic at the end of that one.

"Teach me how to play, please?" 

Daisy looks up at his interruption, and for a moment he thinks she's going to refuse, or worse, get up and walk away, but instead she picks up the other game controller and holds it out to him.

"Sit down then, Phil," she says as he takes it, and while her tone's not very welcoming, she does at least pat the couch beside her.

"Thanks." He takes the seat, and settles in beside her. 

She talks him through the game's scenario and tells him how to play to win, then they begin. He concentrates on not playing too badly, hoping she'll forgive him for any ineptness he displays. Manipulating the game's controller with his prosthetic hand isn't easy, and it occurs to him that this could be classed as therapeutic, if nothing else.

They've been playing for about 15 minutes when Coulson's character winds up badly injured, and she makes a 'tsk' sound at him, then leans into his arm to point something out on the screen. He finds that the knot of tension in his gut that's been there for the past several hours eases just a little at the warmth of her shoulder and arm pressing against his.

"Yeah, you'd be better off relaxing more to play this," she tells him, and he gives her a quizzical look. "Phil, your vibrations indicate you're very tense."

"It's been a tense kinda day," he says, trying for a light tone.

She snorts at his comment, leans away from him, then leans back in, bumping her shoulder against his. "I don't hate you, okay? If that's what you're thinking."

"I – Daisy, no!" He's horrified at the idea that she thought he'd think that of her. He lets go of his controller for a moment and drops his hand to her leg, squeezing gently. It's a daring move, he knows, but he wants to convey his understanding.

"I know why you're mad at me about Ro – Ms Price and the ATCU," he says. "I understand it. Believe me, if there'd been any way to ensure both your safety and Lincoln's, I'd have taken it. I didn't _want_ to trade him for you – that's not how I want SHIELD to operate. Every Inhuman should be important to us, no matter who they are or what they can do."

"But you were desperate," she says.

He feels his face flush and looks away, lifting his hand from her leg. He sighs. "I was very desperate," he admits, still not looking at her. "I can't lose you, Daisy, not after everything."

"Hey," she says, grabbing his leg in turn and squeezing. "If it makes you feel better, I'm glad you didn't let her grab me. Things would've gotten ugly." She sighs heavily. "I'd prefer not to hurt people, if I can avoid it, but I have to tell you that I would not let the ATCU take me without a fight."

"I know," he says softly. "I'm glad it didn't come to that. But I am sorry about losing Lincoln. I mean, I'm glad he got away from them, but I'm sorry we couldn't bring him in safely."

She nods. "So what's she like, the Dragon Lady?"

He snorts out a laugh, then feels embarrassed by his amusement. "She was driving a black convertible," he says. 

"Black?" Daisy asks. "How tasteless."

He chuckles. "It – he – doesn't have a name, though."

She tuts. "No imagination, clearly." She smirks at him, and if he feels slightly guilty at dissing Ros – Ms Price – behind her back; he swallows that down, though, for the sake of enjoying Daisy bantering with him.

"Oh and she came out with three hand/arm related puns in the first minute of conversation."

"What?" Daisy asks, her voice suddenly icy cold. "What gives her the right."

"She figured she wasn't the first," he says, "and she did say sorry." 

"Sure," Daisy says. "That's a bit like someone saying something offensive then claiming it's just a joke, and telling you that you're being oversensitive for reacting angrily to it."

"She didn't realise that the loss of my hand is a relatively new thing," he explains, then wonders why he's defending Ms Price, and hopes that Daisy won't ask that very question.

"That's no excuse," she says with a scowl. "No decent person makes fun of another person's disabilities. Even if you went around making all the hand puns and jokes in the world, it wouldn't give anyone else permission to do the same. That's very ableist."

He feels warmed by Daisy's righteous anger on his behalf – it makes him feel better after their earlier disagreement over the ATCU.

"I definitely don't like her," she declares, and he can't help chuckling at that.

"I don't think I'd noticed that," he says teasingly. He pretends to think. "Yeah, you definitely kept that quiet."

"Haha, Phil. You think you're so funny."

"I don't think, I know," he tells her cockily.

She snorts again, but he can see amusement in her eyes. She yawns suddenly, clapping her hand over her mouth in a futile effort to hide her yawns.

"I should let you go to bed," he says, a little reluctantly. He'd like to stay here and talk some more.

"Mmm. It has been a long, and action-packed day." She shuts down the game, then gets to her feet before offering him her hand. He takes it without thinking, then panics because it's his fake left hand.

"Phil," she says softly, and he looks up at her. "I know it's not flesh and blood, but this is your hand." She squeezes it by way of emphasis, something he can see even if he can't feel it.

"I know," he says, a little too adamantly. 

She shakes her head, then drops his hand in favour of stepping closer and wrapping her arms around him. 

"We'll figure this out, okay?" she says, her voice soft, and he thinks of the times he's said much the same thing to her.

"I know," he tells her. "I trust you, Daisy. I couldn't lose you, you know. You're my right hand."

She tightens her arms around him. "C'mon Phil, let me walk you to your bunk."

"Shouldn't I be walking you?" he asks.

"Who's the superhero around here?" she asks, her tone cocky, and he chuckles.

"You are. Very definitely."

"Well then." She steps back from him, then reaches down and grabs his robot hand, giving it a little tug. He lets her lead him out of the lounge and along the halls and up the stairs to his quarters. He doesn't need this, of course – they're in no immediate danger inside the Playground, but he doesn't object. It's nice, holding Daisy's hand, even if he can't feel it properly. The fact that she's holding his left hand, though, is quite amazing – no one else has touched it except for medical reasons, and here she is, holding his hand as if it is _his_ hand, and not a detachable bit of hardware.

The thought makes him swallow hard against the sudden lump in his throat. The last thing he wants to do is cry in front of Daisy.

When they reach his door, he pushes it open with his free hand, then turns back to her and wraps his arms around her.

"Thank you," he whispers, pressing his cheek against hers as he slides his right hand up into her hair to hold the back of her head.

"It's okay, Phil," she says, as if she senses how emotional he's feeling – and for all he knows, she can sense that – her powers are quite extensive. She pulls back enough to look him in the eyes. "We'll talk again tomorrow, okay?"

He nods, and she leans in and presses her lips to his forehead like she's bestowing a benediction on him, then her arms slide away from him, and she steps back.

He gives her a slightly crooked smile, then steps through his door, and she turns around and walks away, glancing back at him over her shoulder when she reaches the turn in the hall. She gives him a nod, then disappears out of sight, and he sighs, then flicks on his light before closing the door.

He goes to bed relieved that he and Daisy are no longer at odds. It's not a situation he likes, especially when he knows she's right – they can't trust Ms Price and the ATCU, but he hopes they can work with them.


End file.
